An easy recipe of juicy hamburger steak and gravy featuring a brown gravy recipe with onions and mushrooms. A delicious low carb meal the whole family will love.
I’ve seen many weeknight dinner recipes take too many shortcuts and fall short on flavor. What a shame. I think eating is one of life’s many pleasures and I enjoy a great tasting meal. My favorite recipes are those that combine fast and easy technique with awesome flavor. For that, I cook many of our meals in a pan, on the stove, like this popular poblano chicken recipe or a juicy filet steak with mushroom gravy.
The brown gravy recipe on this dish features onions and mushrooms and gains flavors from the browned bits (or fond) left in the pan after cooking hamburger steaks. This is simple cooking at its best.
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Hamburger Steak and Gravy
Hamburger steak, or Hamburg steak, has been around since the turn of the last century. It’s an easy recipe of seasoned ground beef mixed with eggs and cream, shaped into patties and pan fried. Have you ever wondered how “hamburgers” got their name? Now you know – although these ingredients more resemble a meat-loaf than the hamburgers of today.
I grew up in the 70’s when hamburger steak (and Salisbury steak) was a popular dinner recipe. It’s an economical dish that goes beyond plain pan fried ground beef patties. Seasoning is important and using a panade (usually a paste of fresh bread and milk) ensures that the hamburger steak stays juicy and tender. I like my hamburger steak with gravy, so I dressed this up with an easy pan sauce. The result is much more than the sum of its parts.
How To Make Hamburger Steak (Hamburg Steak)
Depending in which decade you were born, you may have never heard of hamburger steaks let alone know how to make hamburger steak. You’ll be surprised how easy it is. Add eggs, seasonings, and cream soaked bread to ground beef. Form into large patties and cook them in a frying or saute pan. Since this is a low carb recipe, I will use a suitable low carb option for the bread in the panade.
Because I’m crazy about mushrooms, I like to serve my hamburger steak with mushroom gravy. I build on the flavor already in the pan by adding mushrooms and onions. Adding a little liquid helps deglaze the pan, and cream and butter help to thicken the sauce. The resulting beautiful brown gravy, flavored with onions and mushrooms, is ready to top any tasty hamburger steak.
But how does it taste? Absolutely amazing! The tender juicy steaks are seasoned beautifully inside and out and have a nice peppery outer crust. The gravy is rich and flavorful with just the right amount of butter and cream to make it luxurious. It’s very hard to imagine that humble ingredients like ground hamburger meat, mushrooms and onions combine to make such an upscale tasting dish. My family loved every bite!
Hamburger Steak With Gravy is 4 net carbs per serving.
An easy recipe of juicy hamburger steak and gravy featuring a brown gravy recipe with onions and mushrooms. A delicious low carb meal the whole family will love.
- 1 1/4 pounds ground beef (85% lean)
- 2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
- 2 tsp Mc Cormicks Montreal Steak Seasoning
- 1/4 cup crushed pork rinds* (or 1/4 cup breadcrumbs if not low carb)
- 1/4 cup heavy cream
- 1 tbsp fresh minced parsley
- 1 tsp oil
- salt and pepper
- 1/4 cup diced onions
- 8 oz sliced button mushrooms
- 1/4 cup water
- 1/3 cup heavy cream
- 2 tbsp whisky (brandy,bourbon, or rum) (optional)
- 1 tsp beef base (bouillon)
- 1 tbsp butter
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Make a panade by soaking the pork rinds (or bread crumbs) in 1/4 cup of heavy cream until absorbed - about 10 minutes. Mince the parsley and finely dice the onions.
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Add the ground beef to a medium bowl, breaking it up as you do. Sprinkle the Worcestershire sauce, steak seasoning, and parsley over the beef. Add the soaked pork rinds (or bread crumbs). Mix with a hand mixer until the ingredients are just combined.
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Divide the seasoned ground beef into 4 even portions and form into patties. Season the outside with salt and a hefty amount of coarse black pepper. (Lots of pepper gives the hamburger steak a wonderful savory flavor.)
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Place a large skillet or saute pan over medium high heat. When hot, add 1-2 teaspoons of oil and swirl to coat the pan.
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Add the hamburger steaks and cook for approximately 3 minutes per side. Remove the steaks from the pan and cover loosely with foil. Turn the heat down to medium.
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If there is not a lot of oil left in the pan, add 1 tablespoon of butter and the mushrooms, stirring to coat all of the mushrooms. Cook for 1 minute. Stir and push the mushrooms to the sides of the pan. Spread the onions in the center of the pan and cover for 1 minute.
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Add the beef base and stir. Next, add the whisky and water, stirring to bring up any browned bits that may still be stuck to the bottom of the pan. Add the heavy cream and any accumulated juices from the hamburger steaks. Bring to a fast simmer, reducing the sauce until it thickens. Stir in 1 tbsp of butter to give the sauce a nice sheen. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper to taste.
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Serve the sauce over the hamburger steaks. It's not a lot of sauce, but it's very flavorful and satisfying. Serves 4.
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Alternately: After the sauce thickens add the hamburger steaks back to the pan to reheat for a few minutes. Turn the heat down to low and loosely cover with foil. Serve with sauce spooned over top.
*If you don't eat pork rinds, add the cream and 1 large egg.
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I made this tonight. It was extremely easy and very tasty! I said something about pork rinds and my husband exclaimed, “I was going to be mad there for a second thinking you had used crackers! This is great!” So you have helped us have an amazing very low carb meal this evening. I will be putting this in my recipe book.
Thank you so very, very much for making it easy to make as well. I hate to cook, but it was easy and took hardly any time. Thank you.
Ren
Ren, I’m so happy you enjoyed the recipe. Thanks for coming back to let me know. Have a wonderful week! -Kim
Delicious, simple dish. The Mr. really enjoyed it. Thank you for sharing! I didn’t use the cream and we didn’t miss it, the Mr. has become very sensitive to dairy so I try to limit how much I use. I rehydrated porcini mushrooms to add to 4 oz of button mushrooms. So, I added the water from the porcinis to the pork rinds. Added an additional Tbsp of butter to the sauce. Lots of flavor and juicy meat!!!! It’s a keeper!
Very big hit with the family we will definitely make this again. I used bread crumbs (can’t stand pork rinds) and it got very thick with the cream so I added a little beef broth. Great flavor all around. Thank you for out for the recipe!
Perfect, Donna. You did just the right thing thinning the gravy with the beef broth – more flavor! Thanks for taking the time to let me know you liked the recipe. Have a fantastic week. -Kim
I tried this last night and while the flavors were so so delicious, I had a problem with the meat falling apart in the skillet when flipping. I’m not sure if any of the ingredients work as a binder. Maybe an egg would help next time? I will definitely be trying this again anyway and am looking forward to leftovers today.
You can add an egg, Mina. I tried it both ways and preferred without, but if it isn’t holding together, use the egg. I’m glad you liked the flavors. Thanks for taking the time to comment. Have a wonderful day. -Kim
This looks amazing, I am allergic to dairy can I use full fat coconut milk for heavy cream?
Absolutely, Misty. -Kim
Hi,
Can I use the oven for this and what short of settings would be best
Hi Larry, I’m sure you can use an oven for this, but I have never done so. Using the pan on the stove results in brown bits stuck in the bottom of the pan which help make the sauce so rich and flavorful. You just wouldn’t get the same thing in the oven. That doesn’t mean it can’t be done, just that the recipe would be different. I just Googled “hamburger steaks oven” and found many results. I hope this helps. -Kim
So easy, and good!
OMG!! We just tried this tonight and it was an absolute hit!! I didn’t have whiskey or rum so I subbed cooking sherry. It worked just fine. The flavors were amazing!!
Your recipes make it so easy to be a good cook and stick to low carb. Thank you!
Made this last night and it was excellent and loved by all. Great staple in the menu rotation.
I’m so happy Liz! This is one of our favorites and I’m thrilled that your family enjoyed it. Have a wonderful week. -Kim
My entire family loved this! They all went back for seconds. I had been looking for a hamburger steak recipe that was both low carb and very similar to what we order at one of our favorite restaurants. (Cotton Patch Cafe).
I didn’t have bullion, but used Kitchen Bouquet and subbed mushroom broth for water. I didn’t have any whiskey and didn’t sub anything for that, although I may try some red wine next time.
All in all, a great addition to our rotation of favorite family meals!
Fantastic, Sally. I’m so happy your family liked the recipe. My parents have a Cotten Patch Cafe near them in Mansfield, Tx, and I think they have some great down-home entrees. I love adding a little chicken base or beef base to my recipes. It adds a bump of concentrated flavor and makes things taste amazing. I get the organic “better than bullion” brand in the soup aisle. They last forever! The whisky helps cut the richness in the sauce and adds a nice flavor, but red wine is great with both mushrooms and beef, so that might be a good ingredient to play with. I might try that myself!
Thanks for taking the time to share your tweaks and for rating the recipe, Sally. Have a wonderful rest of the week. -Kim
Hi! I am a heavy user of My Fitness Pal app. On the desktop version (in the My Recipe tab) I am able to copy links to recipes I use and the nutritional information is automatically populated. This makes it super easy when I make a batch of soup and enjoy over multiple meals.
For some reason, when I copy links from your URL, I get error message “no recipe found”.
I have a work around, to copy and paste, but I then lose the link to the actual recipe and the awesome photos you post!
Hi Kimberly. My husband turned on an option yesterday that prevents scrapper sites from stealing my content by copying and pasting. I had no idea that it would affect people linking to recipes, too. Hmmm. I think we may have to change it back because having my recipes functional for people is more important than the few scrapper sites that steal my content each year. Thanks for letting me know. -Kim
I just tried to do the same – add this recipe to My Fitness Pal but received the same error message. Any chance you will be changing your settings so we are able to link to your recipes? I think most of my recipes are from your site! You have SO many fantastic ones – thank you for that!! : )
Hi Kimberly. I will ask the developer if he has such an option. Since I pay for the premium version, maybe he will add it. Thank you for the feedback. -Kim
Perfect. Thanks so much!
how can I make the gravy thicker? put a little coconut flour or ???
Hi Denise, you can add more cream and let it reduce down further or add about 2 tbsp of cream cheese to thicken it. Another thing you can do is make a slurry of 1 tsp arrowroot powder to the sauce. It will add 2 carbs to the whole dish. -Kim
I made this for dinner tonight. It was totally delicious! I’m bringing leftovers for lunch tomorrow 🙂
I am so glad you like this recipe, LuluBelle! It makes pretty good leftovers, so enjoy! Thanks for taking the time to comment on and rate the recipe. I really appreciate it. Enjoy your week. -Kim
Hey there! Can’t wait to try this as I know my husband will love it gravy is the thing he misses on our keto lifestyle! I feel like an idiot for asking but you say bullion and I have the little cubes but always mix them with water….do I just grind them up so it is a dry powder equal to a tbs?
Thanks for your help
Hi Jess, great question. Yes, I would mash the cube into a powder with some spoons or something. I like using “Better Than Boullion” base. It comes in several flavors and I find they are soooo helpful to bump up the flavor without adding a lot of liquid and then waiting for it to reduce. They also save me from throwing away cartons of leftover chicken and beef broth. Yes, these products have a little added sugar, but 1/2-1 tsp for a whole dish is not going to matter. Enjoy! -Kim
Made this tonight for my family of 8. I tripled the recipe and had plenty left over. I didn’t have bouillon so I subbed beef stock for the water. It made plenty of gravy but wasn’t creamy which is ok by us! I will make this again.
I’m glad you liked the recipe, Kim. Upon tripling the recipe, I might have let the gravy cook and thicken just a little before serving. But you are right, it is not a super thick gravy. Thanks so much for taking the time to leave a comment. Enjoy your day! -Kim
Totally awesome! My husband raved about it and I loved it, too, Thanks for the great recipe – I will have to try some more of yours.
Yay! I’m so happy you both liked the recipe. Thanks for taking the time to comment. Have a great evening. -Kim
Looking at this recipe and others at the bottom of the page have left me breathless with anticipation of preparing them. You are right, so many recipes I’ve seen leave much to be desired in the flavor realm. I’ve subscribed and look forward to more of the same! Thank you for sharing. One thing: another blogger has made bread crumbs from low carb bread, which is much more doable for me than pork rinds, since I do not consume pork products. I am assuming that would be a suitable substitute.
Thank you Naomi. Yes, try the low carb bread crumbs. The pork rinds are basically collagen and become a binder when soaked, try the recipe with your soaked bread crumbs. If the patties don’t hold together, try adding an egg the next time. Enjoy! -Kim
This looks like just what I was looking for. I love the chopped steak in restaurants with gravy. This looks more tasty. Thank you.
Great! It’s a tasty recipe. I hope you enjoy it as much as we do. -Kim
I’m really excited to prepare these amazing recipes. It makes my dinner choices alot easier without going out to a fancy resturant when you can make it in your own home!
Good, Rosie! I hope you like it. -Kim
I made this tonight for my sister’s family. 5 Children ages 3-16 and they all loved it. I didn’t have pork rinds so I substituted chopped up croissants instead of bread crumbs. It turned out amazing! Thanks for posting this recipe.
I love that you used croissants for your bread crumbs, Joanne! I bet that was amazing! Thank you for taking the time to let me know your whole family loved the recipe. Enjoy the rest of your week. -Kim
OK Kim I have eyeing this recipe now since it first came out and all I can say is wow oh wow!! Freaking awesome! We all went crazy for this!! Really truly loved those steak burgers with that cream and pork rind mixture!!
I make a big batch of them so my son could have leftovers and I tripled that scrumptious gravy! Thank God I did I wanted to lick my pan! I was a little naughty and topped my burgers with some Swiss cheese which was soooo good! These will be made in our house on a regular rotation for sure!
Fantastic, Allison! I’m so glad you and your family enjoyed the recipe. I bet they were super delish with the Swiss cheese. I’m going to try that next time for sure. Thank you for taking the time to write such a nice comment. I appreciate it and you! Enjoy your week. -Kim
Looks amazing! Any chance I can sub the heavy cream? I’m dairy intolerant. Would coconut cream work?
Thanks, Karen. Yes, coconut cream (full fat coconut milk)!is the next best thing. I haven’t tested this combination for taste, but I’m sure you’re used to using coconut and don’t notice the taste anymore. Have a great week. -Kim
Best. Hamburger steak. Ever. Thank you.
Lol. We think so too! Hamburger steaks…. who knew? Enjoy your weekend. -Kim
Hi Kim,
This looks delicious. A simple, easy way to turn ground beef into something special. Yum!
Thanks, Julie. I’m glad you like the sound of the recipe. Have a great weekend. -Kim
I made the hamburger steaks last night and they were nothing short of amazing! The savory steaks were delicious, and the mushroom gravy is bow a new family favorite! I didn’t have pork rinds so I soaked almond meal with the HWC before adding it to the meat. I will be making this often! Thank you!
Thanks so much for bringing this over from Facebook. I like your trick of soaking the almond flour in the heavy cream. Im thrilled you enjoyed the recipe. Thanks for taking the time to leave a comment. Enjoy your weekend! -Kim
Looks delish! You mention egg but I don’t see in recipe?
Hi Vanessa. I ended up not using an egg in the final version. It was good with and without the egg, but we liked it better without. You may use the egg if you want. Thanks for your question. -Kim
Is there something I can replace the whiskey with?
You don’t have to use the whisky at all, Valorie. As the alcohol burns off, the whisky is just in the recipe for additional flavor. Enjoy the recipe. -Kim
This was excellent and will be a regular in our house. Thank you!
Great, Deb! I’m glad you enjoyed the recipe! -Kim
What can I use instead of the whiskey? Thank you, this looks spool good.
Hi Valorie. The whisky just adds additional flavor. The recipe will still taste good without it. Enjoy! -Kim
I am solo going to make this! I wonder if you could tell me what your sides were, as they look yummy. Is one cauliflower mash? And green beans with bacon? Thank you.
Yes, Carol. I was testing a green bean recipe that I will share this week. The other side is indeed a cauliflower mash that I am testing (I used an orange variety) with cheddar cheese and other yummy things. I hope you like the hamburger steaks. We just loved them. Have a wonderful week! -Kim
In the instructions, on instruction #4 it says to add the whisky and water. I see the water in the ingredients but I don’t see any whisky?
Thank you Sandy. That was an oversight. I will add it now! Have a great day! -Kim
Thank you!